11 Elements of an Effective Brand Strategy!

This post was originally published on PixoLabo

You Need an Effective Brand Strategy!

Do you know why most of us own at least one Apple product? Is it because they are cheaper? Hell no! Is it because they are better? No, not necessarily; I remember a few iPhone glitches alone. So do you know why we willingly wait in line and then pay a lot of money for Apple products? I'll tell you. It is because they have an effective brand strategy!

A brand is a personality that identifies a product, service, or company, including a name, term, sign, symbol, or design. A brand also represents the relationships between customers, staff, partners, investors, and so forth. Boundless

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Apple doesn't sell computers and smartphones; they sell cool tech! Everything in their brand strategy aligns with that. Their logo is cool; their stores are cool; their technology is cool. Admit it; you played around with an Apple product at least once. You did that because it was cool. And Apple made it cool because they have an effective brand strategy. And so can you!

Some time ago I was invited to a branding conference. There is a reason why I wanted to attend. As a brand strategist myself, it is always interesting to hear what other experts in the field have to say. And there were several brand experts, but only one focused on what it took to develop an effective brand strategy.

Successful branding yields benefits such as increased customer loyalty, an improved image, and a relatable identity. TSL Marketing

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The others touched on various aspects of brand strategy in detail, which was informative. But I know that many business owners still think that a brand strategy is knowing where your logo files are. And that's just not going to do it! So let's get started by looking at what goes into an effective brand strategy.

11 Essential Elements of an Effective Brand Strategy

Strategy

You guessed it; an effective brand strategy starts with strategy. The adage "If you fail to plan, you plan to fail." definitely applies here. Your brand needs a system. And not just plain old any strategy.

You need to recognize market trends and respond to consumer activity if you plan to get ahead. Your brand has to evolve gradually and strategically over time. Remember wasn't built in a day. If you want an effective brand strategy, you need to do it right!

Creativity

Creativity can add to your effective brand strategy. By adding the right amount of creativity, you make your brand go BOOM, as a friend of mine would say! Creativity makes your brand remarkable, lets it stand out from the background noise, and gets people talking about it. Trust me; an effective brand is a competitive advantage you will want!

Vision

If you don't know where the hell you are going, why are you trying to get there? If you want an effective brand strategy, you need to refine and focus your vision all the time! You can't rock your brand if you don't know where it is headed. Having a strategic and realistic vision helps keep your brand on track as you grow and move forward.

Image

The next important aspect of an effective brand strategy is your image. And this is important, folks! It doesn't matter if you are a firm of high-powered attorneys, a gastropub, a tech startup, or a food truck.

Their brand image is where companies fail most of the time. Whether you want to portray the suit-and-tie or the Converse All-Star look, your brand image has to be professional, consistent, and make a great first impression. If you don't rock them the first time, when exactly are you going to do it?

Voice

Equally important for your effective brand strategy is your voice. No, I don't mean your engaging tenor. Instead, I am talking about the tone of voice your brand uses to communicate with your audience.

To be heard, your brand needs to deliver a consistent message with a unique tone of voice. And that voice needs to be compatible with your brand's values, personality, and positioning. So listen to what you sound like to your target audience. Is that working for you?

Trust

Did you ever buy a car from a used car dealer? Remember the fake smile the salesman wore the entire time? All he wanted was your money. And it works the same way in creating an effective brand strategy. People can spot a fake smile a mile away.

Honesty and transparency are the only way to show that your brand is genuine, reputable, and trustworthy. So do yourself a favor; don't come across as a flimsy brand. Ditch the cheap business cards, clip art logos, and lo-res images; they will only hurt you!

Positioning

Brand positioning is critical to establishing an effective brand strategy. So, where does your brand stand? If you want to rock your brand, you can't blend into the background, folks! Remember, your brand needs to go BOOM!

And to do that, your brand has to find a unique position in your marketplace. So, here is a hint: if you drill down and focus on your ideal client, it will become much easier to spot a unique position yourself.

Reach

Part of your effective brand strategy is to have your brand everywhere. That means you need to have a credible presence both online and offline. Online your brand needs to be consistent across your website, blog, and all social channels.

Make sure your voice, image, and message are the same to avoid brand confusion. And make sure your brand representatives are rocking your brand in person, and that includes business cards and printed materials.

Freshness

If you want an effective brand strategy, you can't have a snoring brand! Is your brand coming across as bland or stale? To keep your brand fresh and in front of your audience, you need to regularly publish new content relevant to your audience.

A great way to do that is to establish and keep an active blog. Don't believe me? You are reading this post, aren't you?

Analysis

Part of creating an effective brand strategy is to keep an eye on both your competition and any newcomers on your block, figuratively! If you want to keep rocking your brand, you need to stay one step ahead at all times.

Stay up to date on what is going on in your industry or field. Remember, those booms are just not as effective if your audience heard them before!

Reputation

Building your effective brand strategy is not the hard part. Maintaining one is! To maintain your brand, you will always need to listen to your audience and anyone else talking about you! That is key to understanding what people are saying about your brand. Knowing what people say when you are not in the room is essential.

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Start Creating Your Effective Brand Strategy!

OK, now that you know what goes into an effective brand strategy, you are ready to start rocking your brand! Start by going through my list. Determine which elements you already have, which ones are not working for your brand, and what is missing.

I listed the elements of an effective brand strategy in the order you need to create them. As mentioned earlier, you need to start with a plan. There are many steps before you need to deal with things like analysis or reputation.

Creating an effective brand strategy is the most important thing you need to do if you want to rock your brand. Remember, you only get one chance to make that first impression, and most of your clients will connect with your brand long before they connect with you.?

Therefore, you need to take this very seriously. I have seen many businesses fail not because they had a lousy product or provided no value for their customers. Instead, they died because they did not rock their brand!

If you want an effective brand strategy, I recommend that you engage a professional brand strategist to walk you through it. If that is beyond your budget, at least hire the services of a professional designer to create your logo. And have someone who knows what they are doing assist you with the other steps.

If you need help to get your business or product brand noticed, let’s talk!

By?Gregor Saita

Gregor is Co-Founder and CXO of PixoLabo, a multinational web design agency. With over 25 years of experience in web, UX, and information design, Gregor consults for startups in Asia and the US. He is also an adjunct professor of design and user experience, and a creative technologist and consultant at EnLinx Partners, LLC. Gregor lives with his wife, an award-winning Japanese designer and photographer, in Sendai, Japan. When he is not working, he enjoys writing, exploring, gardening, and sampling new street food. You can connect with Gregor on?LinkedIn ?or?Twitter .